TIGERS LOVE STORY
My daughter Emily has always been a thoughtful child and didn't hesitate to take a crippled and abused
chihuahua for her first dog. She liked the small breeds and Tiger needed her.  I had different feelings about
that dog!!!. Tiger had a badly deformed front leg because of it having been broken and nothing done about
it.  He had some cracked ribs, a crooked tail and a breathing problem . At first glance I thought Tiger was
the ugliest dog I ever saw. He was so hyper in spite of the pain he must have been in. I thought Tiger was
going to be to much trouble. But he so obviously loved my daughter from the start so I gave in. I was right
about the fact that he was going to be a lot of trouble. He cost us a lot of money in vet bills only to find out
there is not to much we can do for his leg except amputate it. He would not sit still long enough for his ribs
to heal properly so his body has an unnatural look to it with very large looking chest. But he healed no
matter how crookedly and became Emilys best friend. Emily  made up games to play for Tiger and Tiger
learned them quickly. My preconceived ideas about chihuahuas being stupid disappeared when I saw them
play.
Emily,  sense she was a baby, has had a bad allergy to certain bug bites. There were many frightening
nights at the hospital when my daughter was younger. It had not effected her much sense she was 10 and
now that she was 12 I started to let down my guard a bit. I thought the worst had past and She had grown
out of it. But Tiger new better. Something did bite Emily while we all slept. Tiger, who slept with Emily, knew
she was in trouble and came to my room to get me. At first I thought he was just being his usual barking
foolish self( my opinion of him at the time). I told him to be quiet and go lay down. He persisted and I
continued to yell at him. So he jumped into my bed(a big no no) and barked right in my face. He made this
strange, howling, barking noise that I had never heard before and have never heard sense. It almost
sounded like words. This made me become frightened with a terrible feeling that something was wrong
with Emily. I walked into the living room as Tiger ran ahead of me making little circles on the floor almost
like he was chasing his tail.  But he kept looking at me to make sure I was coming and continued to bark
the whole time. Then I heard it. Emily was choking and gagging.  I ran to her room and found her barely able
to breath. Her skin was grey. I got the medicine given to me by her doctor to keep around for emergencies.  
I was hoping that it was still good. I gave it to her while calling for my husband to call the emergency room.  
After it was all over and my daughters breathing had returned to normal I noticed that Tiger had gotten
himself so worked up that he was having trouble himself. When things settled down, he curled up at the foot
of the bed and went to sleep. I was in total disbelief about what had happen. I could believe that he knew
Emily was in trouble. But who told him that I would know what to do? Who told him to never give up even
though I punished him for being noisy in the middle of the night (yelling at a chihuahua is punishment in their
world.) Did Tiger know he was meant to be Emilys friend and Hero? I now look at Tiger with different eyes
because I know if it were not for him I would not have my beautiful daughter today. I am glad Emily has Tiger
to help her face all the times of her life. He will always be her friend no matter what else happens for as long
as he lives. And of course that deformed lop eared chihuahua is the most beautiful dog in the world and I
will fight anyone who says something different.
Emily graduates and tiger waits at home. She is going
to be miles away by the end of the Summer but she is
making arrangements to have tiger join her as soon as
she is set up in her new life and her new home. Id
expect no less from my daughter as she has always
shared a bond with this dog, her friend. I will miss them
both but us moms have to let go.
See the silver sash. Graduates with
honors. Let me be the proud Mom a
little.
Update
Emily will be leaving for Arizona soon as she is getting married and going to college there. I never
thought my youngest daughter would end up 2000 miles away from me. Shes let her future husband
know that her and Tiger are a package deal. I have not met him yet but I am glad to see that he is
looking for an apartment for them where they can have Tiger.
Maybe Emily is meant to do great things. Well have to wait and see.
Emily has come to get her precious Tiger and I know Tiger will be happy now that he has the girl back
who is the center of his world. We talk about many things when Emily and I talk but you can be sure
we will talk about Tiger.  What a pair those 2 are.  I am very happy to have them both in my life!
Friends Forever! No matter what!